Hearty vegetable soup

This recipe makes a big pot of very hearty vegetable soup.  I like to make this in the winter when we're feeling sick or have low energy.  It definitely wakes you up and makes you feel good!  This is a great recipe to share with others because it can be hard to eat it all by yourself within a few days, even using it for lunch every day.

Ingredients:

• 2 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 3/4 bag baby carrots or 2-3 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks of celery, washed and sliced
• 1 cup cooked hamburger
• 1/2-1 tbs chopped dried onion
• 1-3 tsp garlic powder
• 7 cups water
• 16 oz tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup barley
• 1/2 cup green lentils (or mixed lentils)
• 1 can whole kernel sweet corn
• 1 can of beans (I use a mix of kidney, pinto, and black beans)
• 2 beef bullion cubes
• 1/2-2 tsp basil
• 1-2 bay leaves
• optional: frozen green beans, peas, diced squash, or any favorite vegetables in the last 15 minutes of cooking to increase the amount of veggies in the soup but beware of overflowing the pot

Instructions:

• Add all the ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil.  Decrease heat to a low simmer and cook for at least half an hour, until potatoes are cooked through and easily pierced with a fork.  Stir occasionally to prevent boiling over.
• Enjoy!

Sweet and spicy pork chops

Pork is a versatile meat that nearly any flavor used on beef or chicken can be applied.  It also tends to be a cheap.  Our sauce pan only fits two pork chops; you can easily make more for leftovers if your pan is bigger or use pork cut into bite-sized pieces to increase the number of servings.

Ingredients:

• 2 bone-in pork loin chops (or any cut of pork really)
• brown sugar
• honey
• salt
• fresh or dried minced ginger
• chili powder
• red pepper flakes
• Worcestershire sauce
• olive oil
• egg noodles

Instructions:

• Put egg noodles in a pot of water and set to boil on the back-burner according to package instructions.
• Cover bottom of pan with olive oil, heat to medium-low and put in pork chops. 
• Drizzle both sides with brown sugar, honey, salt, pepper, fresh diced ginger, chili powder. 
• Cook until not raw, turning pork chops occasionally to allow for even browning.
• Turn up the heat once cooked to sear the pork chops a bit and then reduce heat back to low.
• Add Worcestershire, more brown sugar, and dried ginger to create a sauce in the pan.  Stir occasionally while simmering.  Taste and add more ingredients as needed (more brown sugar for a sweeter sauce, more chili powder for a spicier one).  Sauce will not get thicker; I prefer a thinner sauce with this recipe.  Cornstarch can be added if desired.
• Serve with egg noodles.

Orange Chicken

Tangy, sweet, and full of citrus, this is a definite favorite.  Beware; however, that there will be no leftovers! If you use gluten-free soy sauce, this and most stir-fries are gluten free! (But this one is not healthy, as yummy as it is.)

Ingredients:

Sauce:

• 2+ cups orange juice (I use the pulp-free frozen concentrate kind)
• 2 good pours of soy sauce
• 1 tbs vinegar
• 3-4 tbs brown sugar
• shake of dried minced onion
• shake of garlic powder
• red chili pepper flakes (add according to desired heat)
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 2 spoonfuls cornstarch
• rice
• chicken (we use Jasmine)

Instructions:
Mix sauce and allow to simmer then get rice ready so it can also simmer on a back-burner.  Then make chicken.  Once chicken is cooked, add to sauce.  Rice should be ready at about the same time the chicken is and can be left, covered, to keep warm until ready.
     Sauce

• Mix orange juice, soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, onion, garlic, and pepper flakes in a pot.  Bring to a boil, stirring frequently to avoid burning.  Turn down heat to a low simmer.  Sauce will look brown.  Taste and adjust if needed--sauce should be sweet, tangy, with some kick.
• When chicken is ready, mix water and cornstarch in a cup.  Add to sauce, bring to a boil, and stir until sauce is thickened.
• Put chicken into sauce and cook on medium, stirring occasionally, until chicken is coated and gooey.
• Serve chicken over rice with extra sauce poured on top.

     Rice

• Rinse about 2 cups rice and add to 4 cups of water in a medium to large pot.  Cover and simmer over medium-low heat until rice has absorbed all the water and is tender or as instructed by package.

     Chicken

• Cut 2-4 thawed chicken breasts into bite size pieces
• Restaurant-style chicken: drench in cornstarch and fry in canola oil until golden brown. Then dump in sauce and simmer for at least 5 minutes until gooey and delicious.
• Simple chicken: Put a little bit of olive oil in a saute pan and brown chicken until cooked through and slightly golden.

Fry Bread

This versatile bread, the base for Navajo tacos, can be topped with chili, taco filling, honey, or anything that sounds good! Because it's fried, the ingredient measurements don't need to be exact.  It'll taste good no matter what!  Once you've made it a few times you'll probably have the recipe memorized.  It's a simple way to make a meal feel special. Kids love to make the dough into different shapes.  The cooked rounds can be refrigerated and microwaved the next day but it's really best to serve these fresh.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour+about a cup extra
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup water
• Enough canola/vegetable oil to fill a large pot with a 1" layer

Instructions:

• Mix the dry ingredients together thoroughly to prevent baking powder clumps
• Mix in the wet ingredients.  Add more flour until a ball forms, sticky, but that you could pick up easily.  Let sit for at least five minutes covered by a towel in a warm spot. 
• Depending on your stove, now may be a good time to put the oil on the stove at medium or medium low to warm up.  It's warm enough when a wooden spoon handle inserted in the oil has some bubbles coming out from it.  It shouldn't have a ton of bubbles though--the fry bread will burn if the oil is too hot.
• Put the dough onto a floured, clean counter or cutting board spread with flour.  Half the ball and then continue to half each resulting ball until you have 8 pieces or until each piece is about the size of a golf ball.  It's ok to add in more flour as needed to make the dough workable.
• Flatten a ball until it is thin but doesn't break.  If the dough gets a hole, squish it together to make it whole again.  Again, it's ok to use more flour as needed.
• Put the raw tortilla in the oil.  It will puff up considerably.  Cook until the edges are golden. Flip and cook until the other side is golden.  The first tortilla or two will be very light, the last one will look too dark, as the oil fills with flour.  Take the fry bread out and lay on a cooling rack lined with paper towels.
• While one tortilla cooks, shape the next ball of dough.  
• Serve as soon as all the fry bread is cooked.

Makes about 8 servings, one round apiece. 

Protein-packed Chili

This dish goes really well with fry bread or could be spread on rice, tortilla, or hard taco.  It packs a lot of protein and is really filling. It makes great leftovers.

Ingredients:

• ~1 cup cooked hamburger
• 1 can beans (black, kidney, mixed)
• 16 oz can tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup dried green lentils (optional)
• 1 1/2 tsp chili powder or to taste
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tbs dried minced onion
• 2 tsp dried garlic
• salt to taste

Instructions:

• Rinse the lentils.  In a medium pot, boil the lentils in about 3 cups of water for 10-15 minutes until they are tender but not mushy.  The skins will have peeled.
• Drain excess water from pot.  Add hamburger, beans, tomato sauce, and spices.  Simmer for at least 15 minutes to allow flavors to blend together; everything is already cooked but the flavors will be stronger the longer it simmers.

Makes approximately 5 servings.

Bacon Sloppy Joes

This BBQ bacon twist on the sloppy joe is fast, simple, and creates only one skillet to wash.  We loved this easy dinner for two!  Our only improvement would be doubling the recipe to create leftovers.

Ingredients:

• One cup cooked ground beef
• 3 slices bacon
• 1 tbsp dried minced onion
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 2 tbsp AI sauce
• splash soy sauce
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 4 slices of Texas toast (toasted or untoasted)
• cheddar cheese (optional)

Instructions:

Cook bacon in skillet over medium heat, flipping as necessary until bacon is somewhat crispy. Drain fat and chop bacon into small pieces.  Add the rest of the ingredients (except cheese and bread) to the skillet.  Cook for about 15 minutes over medium heat or until sauce has browned and thickened.  You can leave the mixture on low for longer if desired to allow the sauce to really come together.  Spread on bread and top with cheese if desired.

*Make it fancy by toasting the bread/using hamburger buns and adding mayo.  It really tastes like a sloppy BBQ bacon burger!